Unmasked
by The Foolish Author
Summary: “He had killed more than once, hell, he had killed more than ten times, and never once had he hesitated. But now, with this kid, he didn’t know if he could follow through.” Roxas just wanted freedom. Axel just wanted revenge. Full summary inside. Dark-ish
1. Chapter 1

**Full Summary: **Roxas's life is ruled by his father, the powerful, appearance obsessed ruler of the crime-filled Hollow Bastion. When Roxas is kidnapped by Axel, a wanted serial killer, he may finally find freedom from his father, but not in the way he wanted, especially when Axel is just out for revenge against his father.

_**A/N**__ As of right now, this is going to be an rather longish two-shot. It was inspired by numerous viewings of the Dark Knight, so some characters are based on those from the movie._

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or the Dark Knight; I've simply borrowed ideas and/or characters from both.**

**Warnings: AU, Akuroku, implied R/S and L/C, Characters OOC, Abuse, Death.**

**Part 1**

"Roxas, these forms need to be filled out and on my desk by five o'clock tonight." Phones were ringing, people were typing, and Roxas Strife was sitting at his desk in his father's office building, dreading the pile of work being mounded upon it.

"Yes, sir." Roxas let out a quiet sigh. It was already four, and he had been at work since seven. His father, Richard Strife, was the mayor of Hollow Bastion, the capital city. Unfortunately, this city also had the highest crime rate in the country, and it was an election year. His father needed to look good in order to be re-elected, and in order to look good, they needed to make it look like the crime was being taken care of.

"Be home by five-thirty for the dinner party."

Roxas sighed once again, and rolled his eyes. "I'll be there."

"Don't be disrespectful," Richard hissed quietly, so as not to let on to others that they were arguing. "This party is very important to the election, and I will not have my son make me look bad."

"I'm not going to make you look bad, _father_, I'll be there on time."

"You better or there _will be consequences_." With that being said, Richard strode out of the office building.

Once his father was gone, Roxas slid down in his chair in relief. His father may seem like a wonderful, caring leader to his city, but to his sons he was very harsh. Any "wrong doings" were punished in such a way that repeat performances would not occur. Roxas was the youngest in his family. Cloud was off somewhere traveling the world in order to "extend his studies." Roxas knew he was really just trying to get away from their father, and was probably staying with his lover, Leon.

Sora was only slightly older than Roxas, seeing as they were twins. Sora looked more like their father than Cloud or Roxas, with his spiked brown hair. Cloud and Roxas both favored their mother, who had had golden blonde hair. All three boys had her sapphire blue eyes.

Roxas stared at the picture on his desk of him and his brothers. He wished to be with Cloud, living his own life, instead of being stuck with his father, in this stifling office. He felt as if he was drowning in his own life.

Shaking his head to rid it of thoughts of freedom, he grabbed the pile of papers and got to work.

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It was quarter after five, and Roxas was just leaving the office. He had to be home in fifteen minutes, or suffer his father's wrath. He quickly threw on his black coat and tied a matching black scarf around his neck, before venturing into the snowy city.

Roxas rushed all the way home, completely unaware of the figure silently following along behind him.

He arrived home five minutes late, to a house filled with elegantly dressed people that his father needed to impress. As he opened the doors to his house, many of the people turned to stare at him, but all Roxas could see was his father, and the quickly hidden look of anger in his eyes.

"Ah, this is my son Roxas," Richard told the man next to him, as Roxas approached. "He's currently working as an intern in my office. He's studying to be a lawyer."

_Unfortunately_, Roxas thought to himself. Outwardly, he smiled politely to make a good impression. "I'm afraid I'm a bit late, I was catching up on some extra work, and lost track of time."

"You seem like a dedicated young man," the man that had been speaking with Richard said.

Roxas simply offered another smile, while his father patted him on the back a bit harder than could be considered gentle.

"Well, if you'll excuse me, I'll just go wash up and change before dinner." The man smiled at Roxas and shook his hand, before Roxas was able to slip away.

Roxas rushed to his bedroom and quickly changed into black pants, and a white, button-up collared shirt. As he was rolling up the sleeves of his shirt, Sora burst into the room, panting.

"Roxas! You were late! Father's gonna kill you!"

Roxas gave Sora a slightly crooked smile. "Sora, calm down, he's not going to kill me. I'll be fine."

Sora let out a sigh, before asking, "Well, how come you were late?"

"Father gave me a pile of papers to sort through before he left. It took me a while to get through everything." Roxas rolled his eyes, while slipping on his shoes.

"I'm sorry you're the one who got stuck with working at the office." Sora said softly, giving his brother a sad smile.

Roxas gave Sora a quick hug, "It's not your fault. I'm just happy it's not you." While Roxas had gotten an internship at their father's office, Sora was living the happy teenage life. He was free to study what he wanted, hang out with friends, and get whatever job he wanted, as long as it didn't make their father look bad. He was currently working at a café near their private school, where their best friend Riku worked.

Roxas didn't know why, but his father seemed to think Roxas was the one to carry on in his name. He was the one who had to get perfect grades, have a steady job, and look presentable at all times. He didn't have time to hang out with his friends, not that he really had any besides Sora and Riku anymore.

Roxas figured it was because he was more like Cloud than Sora was. Originally, their father had tried to get Cloud to become the perfect son, but once Cloud came out that he was gay, their father practically disowned him, but of course not to the public. Roxas didn't have Cloud's courage. Roxas was still only seventeen, and his only source of income was his father. He wished he could simply run away, as Cloud had done, but he had no where to go, and no means to do so.

A knock suddenly sounded at Roxas's bedroom door, before it opened abruptly. Sora and Roxas turned to see their father standing in the doorway. "Roxas, I would like to speak with you in my office."

Roxas nodded his head before turning to give his brother one last quick hug. "I'll see you later, ok?"

Sora nodded, looking a bit fearfully from Roxas to their father. He quickly left the room to head back downstairs to the party.

Richard grabbed Roxas by his upper arm, and dragged him forcefully to his office. Roxas was sure the tight grip would leave bruises later.

"What are you trying to do?!" Richard yelled at his son as soon as they were behind the closed doors of his office. "You know how important this dinner is! I can not—no, _will_ not have my successor giving me a bad name. I told you to show up on time, and you disobeyed me once again."

Roxas knew better then to try to defend himself; it would only end up worse for him, so he held his tongue. Hopefully his father wouldn't do anything to drastic, because of the people downstairs.

"You know I have to punish you now." Richard stated, seemingly calming down. Roxas knew what would come next.

(1) Richard pulled a coin out of his pocket, and rubbed his thumb across the head side of it, before flipping it, and doing the same to the tail side.

"Heads says punishment; tails says you get off this time."

Roxas held his breath as his father flipped the coin in the air. It landed in the palm of Richard's hand, face up. Next thing he knew, Roxas was on the floor, with the wind knocked out of him, Richard standing over him.

"Punishment."

Five minutes later, Roxas was picking himself off the floor, as his father left the room. He made his way to the bathroom to check the damage. He had been correct in assuming his father wouldn't be too harsh, due to the party. He had had much worse before.

Standing in front of the long mirror in the bathroom, Roxas unbuttoned his shirt, and glared at his stomach. It was now a rainbow of red, blue, purple and black. The bruises scattered from his lower stomach to his rib cage. He ran a hand lightly across his skin, and winced at the shock of pain that resulted. Sighing, he buttoned his shirt back up, and tucked it into his pants. Best look as presentable as possible to avoid further damage at the hands of his father.

Roxas quietly slipped back downstairs, and made his way over to the corner of their living room, where Sora and Riku were talking.

"Roxas!" Sora was the first to notice Roxas and rushed to give him another hug. Roxas tried to cover his slight gasp of pain as Sora's arms brushed over his stomach. Unfortunately, Riku noticed the flash of pain in his eyes.

As Sora and Roxas parted, Riku stepped nearer to Roxas and observed him more closely. "What happened?"

Roxas gave a slight shrug. "Not much, I'm fine."

Riku's eyes narrowed, "You're lying Roxas." Riku knew Roxas. He knew he was strong-willed and very smart. He also knew that Roxas tended to hide his own pain to spare others from sharing it. Roxas looked for the good in everyone, and could find an excuse for all bad deeds (like ones his father committed against him), unless it came to his own. Roxas could forgive just about anyone for anything, and yet, had the bad habit of feeling guilt for other's wrong-doings.

"Don't worry about me, it's nothing." Roxas hated when people focused on him. He always masked his true feelings; it was a defense mechanism, for himself, and others. He didn't like burdening others, especially Sora and Riku, with his problems.

Riku opened his mouth to say something, but stopped when Sora glanced at him with a warning in his eyes. Roxas walked to the other side of the room to get a drink. "Leave it for now," Sora told Riku, placing a gentle hand on his arm. They both just watched Roxas from across the room, concern painted across both of their features.

Roxas grabbed a glass of water, and sipped at it slowly. He had a feeling something bad was going to happen, and he didn't want Sora or Riku to notice he was feeling anxious, it would just cause them to worry more than they already were, but he couldn't control the feeling that someone was watching them.

Placing his glass of water on the long table that was covered with a white cloth, and assorted food items for guests, he silently left the room. He wrapped himself up in his coat, before slipping out the backdoor. He wandered around the large yard before straying to the gazebo, and sitting on a bench inside. Roxas leaned over, so his face was covered by his hands and was resting in his lap. He had the inexplicable urge to cry, but forced it back. He had no real reason to do so, crying couldn't fix your life, no matter how messed up it was.

Taking a deep breath, Roxas calmed himself, before standing up to return to the party. A sudden noise from behind had him spinning around, only to meet darkness, as he was bashed in the side of the head, and fell to the ground. The last thing he saw was a smirking face, and the last thing he heard was a dark, cackling laugh.

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"Riku, where did Roxas go?" Sora was looking anxiously about the room, scanning guests for a glimpse of his brother. Last he saw, Roxas was still standing by the refreshments.

Riku glanced around the room quickly, before looking back to Sora. "I thought I saw him head out the back door." Riku had a bad feeling, but didn't want to worry Sora. It didn't really matter though, seeing as Sora was already starting panic.

"Riku, we need to find him, I have a really bad feeling." Sora grabbed Riku's arm and dragged him outside to the backyard.

"Sora calm down, I'm sure he's fine." Riku didn't even believe the words coming out of his own mouth.

They eventually wandered to the gazebo and walked inside. Sora's eyes narrowed in on the ground. "Riku!"

Riku rushed over to Sora's side, and saw that Sora's eyes were wide with fear. He followed the other's gaze to the ground and reached down to pick up a clown mask that had been left there.

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Roxas's eyes began to flutter open, when someone's hand slapped against his cheek a few times. His eyes flew wide open and he jerked into a sitting position.

"Ah, ah, ah, don't try going anywhere," a smooth voice said through the darkness. Roxas felt something cool press into his neck. Recognizing it as a knife, he quickly stalled all movement.

Roxas glanced nervously about the room, carefully moving just his eyes. The room was dark, so he couldn't really make out his surroundings, but he could tell he was on a bed, with some unknown person that had kidnapped him.

"What do you want?" Roxas asked, masking the fear he felt.

The body behind him pushed closer to him, and he felt hot breath on his neck, before he heard the whispered word in his ear. _"Revenge."_

Roxas blinked in confusion. "Revenge? For what? I don't think I even know you."

"Your father knows me."

Roxas let out a sigh. Of course, this was the result of something his father had done. Roxas silently wondered how much longer he would have to pay the price of his father's acts, before he ended up dead.

"Do you know what he did to me _Roxas_?" Roxas felt a shiver run down his spine, as the voice spoke his name slowly, taking extra time to roll the 'r.'

Roxas slowly shook his head 'no,' before asking, "How do you know my name?"

"Everyone knows your name, _Roxas_. You're Daddy's little protégé. You're going to be the next Richard Strife, aren't you?"

Roxas winced, as the truth came out. He knew his father was well-known, that much was obvious, but that he, himself, was also known now, was a bit of a shock. "Who are you?"

The voice chuckled darkly. "The name's Axel. Got it memorized?"

_Axel; now why did that name sound familiar?_

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"That's the mask of that wanted serial killer, the one the media's calling the Masked Slayer..." Riku stated, staring down in shock at the clown mask in his hands.

Sora let out a sob, as he collapsed to the ground. "What does that mean? That he's got Roxas? That he's going to kill him?"

Riku sat down next to Sora and wrapped his arms around him. "I don't know Sora. I'm sorry." He wished there was more he could do for Sora, but there was nothing he _could_ do. Riku knew one thing for sure, and that was that Roxas was in danger. The Masked Slayer was known widely around the city for stalking his prey, before capturing, torturing, and killing them. No one knew what he looked like, because he wore a clown's mask. But his name was carved into every victim's neck. _Axel._

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"Do you wanna hear a story Roxas?" Axel asked his small victim.

Roxas had no choice but to nod yes.

"I was once a very happy man, you know. I had a nice apartment downtown, a steady job, a lover. But this isn't a very happy story, so don't get your hopes up." The knife still pressed against Roxas's throat began moving slowly, drawing a thin line of blood. "One day, I came home from work to find my lover's body strewn across the living room floor, his blood painting the walls." The knife began to carve letters into Roxas's neck, and Roxas bit his tongue to keep from crying out in pain. "There was a man there, standing over his dead body, and he looked at me with these cold, dark eyes, and said 'It was heads.'" Axel finished carving into Roxas's neck, and looked over his work, before nodding in satisfaction.

"To this day, I don't know what he meant, or why he even decided to come to our apartment and kill him, but I guess, after, I went a little _crazy_."

Roxas ignored the pain in his neck, and swallowed before saying, "I'm sorry." He understood that it was his father's sick game of chance that had killed Axel's lover, and Roxas himself, had been on the loosing side of it too many times not to care about others who had felt the same pain as him. He hadn't known before that his father had killed anyone, but he wouldn't put it past him.

Axel looked momentarily confused at the apology, before narrowing his eyes into a glare. "Don't think you're getting off easy just because you apologize."

Roxas didn't say anything, but nodded his head slowly. That hadn't been a thought that crossed his mind. He felt sad for Axel. Roxas's father had taken away his loved one, and Roxas felt guilty for that, because he knew his father never would.

Axel was angry. Roxas wasn't giving the reactions he expected. He wasn't crying, screaming, or threatening. Instead, he was quiet, closed off, and even offering _apologies_. Axel growled, before pushing Roxas down on the bed, and straddling his hips.

Roxas looked up at his kidnapper with wide eyes. This was the first glimpse of his face Roxas had gotten. Although, it wasn't really a face, seeing as Axel was wearing the mask of a clown. The mask only covered the upper part of his face, leaving the bottom visible. Roxas gasped as he finally understood why the name Axel sounded familiar. He was the so-called Masked Slayer.

Axel smirked at the recognition in Roxas's eyes, and suddenly Roxas understood why Axel only wore half a mask. That smirk was more frightening than any mask could ever be.

"What shall we do now _Roxy_?" Axel rested the knife at Roxas's neck, before sliding it down his arm, almost gently, so that it left only a shallow cut. He suddenly moved the knife to the collar of Roxas's shirt, before he slowly started cutting the buttons off.

Axel threw a quick look to Roxas's face, before doing a double-take, and focusing in on his expression. Roxas's eyes were blank of any emotion, there was no fright, anticipation or hurt. Axel recognized the expression from somewhere, but couldn't place it. He shook his head to remove himself from his thoughts, before returning to his task.

The knife slowly made its way down Roxas's torso. As it reached his stomach, Roxas was suddenly removed from his trance-like state, and he gasped in pain. Axel stared at Roxas in confusion; he hadn't even cut his skin yet. He finished his job of cutting off the buttons, before opening the shirt and gasping. Roxas moved his head up to glance at his stomach. If possible, it was worse than it had been earlier in the night, the colors seeming brighter and angrier.

Axel stared in shock at the horrible bruised skin of Roxas's stomach. He ran a surprisingly gentle hand over the internal wounds, and Roxas let out a hiss of breath. "Who did this to you?" He demanded.

Roxas looked at Axel in confusion, before turning his head to the side, and looking away. "My father." Roxas stated quietly.

Axel let out an angry growl, before closing Roxas's shirt over the bruises. He got off of Roxas and the bed, and stormed out of the room. Roxas sat up slowly, completely confused. He had been expecting Axel to carve him up, before slowly killing him. He lifted a hand to feel the still bleeding cuts at his neck. Knowing who Axel was, he knew that he had been branded with his name.

Roxas let out a sudden yawn, and vaguely wondered what time it was as he lay back down on the mattress. His mind wandered to thoughts of his brother, and wondered if Sora and Riku noticed he was gone. His last thought before drifting into unconsciousness was a hope that they weren't worrying about him.

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"We have to call the police about Roxas's disappearance." Sora suddenly said.

Riku let out a quiet sigh. "There's a certain amount of time they'll have to wait before issuing a missing person's report, but we can at least put them on alert, especially since there's a serial killer involved." His biggest worry was that the cops wouldn't take this seriously, and just think that Roxas had run off of his own accord, as Cloud had done.

"They have to do something though! What if he kills Roxas?" Sora paused that train of thought; he had to think positively. "Maybe… maybe he won't kill Roxas. After all, he usually just kills his victims where he finds them, right? But this time Roxas is missing, and he left a mask behind. So there's a chance that he won't kill him…"

Giving Sora a small smile, Riku said, "You're right, there is a chance. Besides, Roxas is strong, he'll be fine." Riku really hoped his words proved to be true.

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Roxas's eyes fluttered open to see that a dim light had been turned on in the room, and that Axel was pacing back and forth while muttering to himself.

Axel didn't understand what was going on. He was having doubts about this whole thing, and he never had doubts. He had killed more than once, hell, he had killed more than ten times, and never once had he hesitated. But now, with this kid, he didn't know if he could follow through. Roxas had been hurt too, and he seemed to be a good person, and for some strange reason, Axel was oddly attracted to him.

Suddenly, Axel turned to face Roxas and strode up to the bed. "How am I supposed to kill you?" He asked rather angrily, as he stared down at Roxas. "I had this all planned out, how I was going to get my revenge, and now…"

Roxas simply stared up at Axel, before quietly saying, "I'm sorry."

"Stop that! You keep apologizing! Why are you doing that? You haven't even done anything!" Axel was seething at this point; he was angry and confused at the way this boy was acting.

"My father hurt you." Roxas stated, guilt showing in his eyes.

"Yeah, but he's hurt you just as much, and it wasn't you that hurt me, so why are you guilty?!" Axel spoke quickly, taking a deep breath before continuing. "And, see? This brings me back to my dilemma, how the hell am I supposed to kill you when you've never done anything wrong?" Axel suddenly sat down on his bed. Neither he nor Roxas said anything for a while.

Roxas suddenly broke the silence by saying, "You're wrong."

Axel turned to face him in confusion. "What?"

"You're wrong about me. I haven't been hurt more than you."

"What are you talking about? Have you even looked at your stomach?" Axel asked in exasperation.

Roxas shook his head. "It's not the same thing." He ran a hand lightly across his stomach, "Physical wounds heal." He reached over and laid his hand over Axel's heart. "Emotional wounds leave scars that can't be healed, and the hurt is always there."

Axel looked down at Roxas's hand on his chest, before staring into his bright blue eyes. He moved his own hand up to cup Roxas's face, before leaning down and pressing a kiss against his lips. Roxas's eyes widened in shock at the feeling, and didn't know how to react. Axel pulled away, and an angry scowl grew on his face.

"Why didn't you kiss back?" He asked angrily, and in a rather childish manner.

"I—I've never… I mean, no one's ever…" Roxas looked down at his hands resting in his lap, unsure how to answer.

Axel suddenly grinned. "You've never been kissed before?"

Roxas shook his head slowly in embarrassment. "I barely have time for friends, let alone a relationship."

Axel placed his hands on Roxas's shoulders, and lightly pushed him back, until he was once again pressed into the mattress. Roxas stared up at Axel with wide eyes, and hoped that he wasn't angry with him. "I'm sorry."

Axel sighed. "Roxas, you don't need to keep apologizing when you've done nothing wrong." Roxas just continued staring up at his captor. "Close your eyes."

Roxas looked slightly confused, but allowed his eyes to slide shut. Axel leaned over Roxas and just took in his features for a moment. The boy seemed strong-willed, and was obviously able to hide pain, which he did only to save others from having to share his burden. And yet, as strong as he was, he still had an innocence about him that Axel didn't want to corrupt.

Roxas was waiting. For what, he didn't know, but he kept his eyes shut and waited patiently. He just hoped Axel wouldn't feel the need to hurt him again tonight. Soon, he felt Axel's breath ghosting over his face, and held his own as he waited for what was to come. Once again, Axel's lips brushed against his own, before pulling away. His eyes fluttered open to meet Axel's emerald gaze, and he tensed under his stare.

"Relax," Axel whispered. "I'm not gonna hurt you right now."

Roxas realized that that probably meant he'd be hurt again later, but found that at the moment, he didn't care. As Axel's lips made contact with his for the third time, Roxas allowed his eyes to flutter shut of their own accord this time. Gently, Axel's lips moved across his own, and he felt himself getting lost in the new feeling. A sudden wetness on his lips made him gasp, allowing Axel's tongue to slip inside his mouth. It gently glided over Roxas's teeth, and ran across the roof of his mouth, causing Roxas to shiver. When the tongue met his own, he allowed instinct to take over, and gently moved his own against it.

As the kiss grew more passionate, Roxas draped his arms lightly around Axel's neck, and his hands reached up to run through his spiky hair. Axel shivered in delight at the feeling of Roxas's hands in his hair, and moaned into his mouth. The moan startled Roxas, and he pulled away from Axel, who stared down at him with lust-filled eyes. Roxas's own eyes were clouded over as he mentally replayed the scene in his head.

"That wasn't so bad was it?" Axel asked quietly, with a small smirk growing on his face.

Roxas shook his head lightly, only slightly confused about what had just transpired.

"Good." Axel lifted himself off of Roxas and the bed, and walked towards the door. "I'll be back later," and with that left the room, and Roxas, in silence.

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It had been hours since Roxas went missing. It was early morning, and there was no sign of him apart from the mask left behind. Sora had had to tell his father what happened, much to Richard's displeasure. It was just like his son to get himself kidnapped when he had so many other things to worry about. Of course, as soon as it got out to the papers and reporters that one of the Strife sons was missing, he became the distressed father who was desperately searching for his lost son.

They were holding together as best as they could, but Riku could tell that Sora wasn't going to be able to stay strong much longer. There had been no signs as to where Roxas was taken, and no calls for ransom.

They were huddled together on a couch in the living room, waiting for any sign that Roxas was ok. They both jumped as the phone rang, and Riku stood to answer it.

"It's probably a reporter." He strode across the room and grabbed the phone. "Hello? Yeah, he's here, hold on."

"It's Cloud." Riku handed the phone over to Sora.

"Cloud?" Sora almost burst into tears at the sound of his brother. "No, we don't know where he is, and no one's called or anything for money, and I don't know what they want."

Riku rested a hand on Sora's shoulder comfortingly, and Sora leaned into the touch. "Of course he's pissed. All he cares about is winning his stupid election. He's more worried about how this will affect his polls, then if Roxas is actually alright or not." A few angry tears leaked out of Sora's eyes, and Riku brushed them away gently. Sora offered him a small smile of thanks. "Alright, I'll talk to you soon then." Sora handed the phone back to Riku, who hung it up.

"What did he say?"

"He's going to come up and stay here until we find Roxas."

Riku sat back down on the couch. "Is he bringing Leon?"

"I don't know," Sora responded. "I would assume so though."

"That'll make your father happy…" Sora let out a small sigh, before standing up.

"Come on," he held out a hand for Riku to take. "Let's go set up their room for them."

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Roxas blinked and lazily sat up, realizing he had fallen asleep once again. He felt refreshed, and guessed that Axel must have let him sleep for a decent amount of time. Silently, he wondered if he should get up or if that would just make his captor angry. Axel was as much a mystery to Roxas as he was to Axel. He went from murderous and angry, to seemingly caring and understanding in just seconds; it was hard to keep up with the rapid mood changes.

Turning his thoughts to his current situation, he began to wonder if there was a chance he would ever return home. Sora must be out of his mind with worry by this point, and that was the very last thing Roxas ever wanted. A frown began to grow on his face as he thought of his brother, and that's when Axel decided to come back into the room.

He wasn't wearing a mask, Roxas noticed in slight shock as he took in the previously hidden features of his face. The bright viridian eyes Roxas had gazed into earlier seemed even brighter accompanied by the markings etched beneath Axel's eyes. In the back of his mind he questioned why Axel was allowing him to see his face unmasked.

"How did you sleep?" Axel spoke, breaking the silence of the room.

Roxas broke from his thoughts and focused his attention on Axel. "Well, thank you." He wasn't quite sure how to speak with him, not wanting to upset him in any way. Now that he was well rested, the full gravity of his situation was beginning to sink in.

Axel gave a quick nod, and took a hesitant step towards the bed. Roxas's head tilted in slight confusion as to why he seemed so hesitating. Axel shook his head and crossed the rest of the room. Roxas was surprised to see that Axel had brought food with him; he hadn't noticed before, as he had been preoccupied with his lack of a mask.

"Are you hungry?" Axel was unsure of himself around Roxas. He knew he definitely wasn't treating him as he normally would, but this wasn't the normal situation. He was finding himself much more intrigued with the boy than he should be, and couldn't help the fact that he had taken a liking to him.

Though Roxas knew he should eat, his mind was so preoccupied with thoughts of his brother that his appetite wasn't really present at the moment. He slowly shook his head in silence.

A frown crossed Axel's face at Roxas's answer. "What's wrong?" he questioned before thinking.

Hesitantly, Roxas replied, "I just wonder if I'll get to return home."

He didn't know why, but this reply made him angry. "You don't want to stay with me?"

Eyes widening in realization, Roxas quickly said, "It's not that I don't want to stay with you…" He stopped for a moment, as he realized this statement was true. He was a bit scared to find that he liked Axel a lot more than he probably should. Wasn't it wrong for him to want to stay with his captor? Roxas wondered if he was suddenly suffering Stockholm syndrome. "It's just that I miss my brother and Riku, and I'm afraid they'll worry more than they should about me."

"Who's Riku?" Axel asked, eyes narrowed and filled with something akin to jealousy.

Brow raised in surprise at the irritation suddenly filling Axel's eyes, Roxas replied, "My brother's boyfriend, and my best friend."

Axel's anger faded away at Roxas's response. "If I let you call your brother, would you eat?" He still didn't know why he was so concerned for Roxas, but he didn't want to see him get sick.

Suddenly filled with the anticipation of speaking to Sora, Roxas nodded his head quickly, and offered Axel a smile. Axel returned the smile with a small one of his own. He left the food on the bedside table, and went to grab a phone.

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Sora and Riku had just finished setting up Cloud and Leon's room, when the phone rang once again.

"I wonder who's calling this time." Sora questioned out loud, before going to retrieve the phone. "Hello?"

"Sora?" Roxas's voice sounded through the phone.

Sora nearly dropped the phone in surprise. "Roxas!?" He quickly glanced to Riku, who had looked up sharply at Sora's shout. "Where are you? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, don't worry, and I don't actually know where I am."

"How can you tell me not to worry? I've been going out of mind, you just disappeared and all that was left was one of those masks that that serial killer wears, and I didn't know if you were dead or not." Sora took a deep breath and leaned against Riku when he wrapped his arms around the smaller boy.

On the other end of the line, Roxas took a deep breath himself and leaned against the headboard of the bed for support. "I'm sorry, I just hate when you worry about me. I just went outside to try and breathe for a while, and someone knocked me out, and I woke up here." Roxas allowed his gaze to drift to Axel, who was watching him intently.

"Well, can you at least tell me if you've been hurt?"

Roxas ran a finger up his arm and to his neck, tracing the cut of Axel's knife. "No, Sora, I haven't been hurt." He saw Axel's gaze fall away from his, almost in shame.

"I swear I'll find a way to kill him if he hurts you in any way." Sora just had to find Roxas first.

"It's not his fault," Roxas whispered.

"What do you mean, it's not his fault?!" Sora exclaimed in anger.

Axel locked gazes with Roxas once again as he heard Sora's shout from the phone.

"It's father, he did something horrible to Axel. He's just acting out of revenge; I can't blame him for that."

"Well, I can. You shouldn't be the one that always has to deal with the consequences of father's actions. And no one should take out their anger on someone just because someone related to them hurt them in some way."

"Sora, that barely made any sense." Roxas's lips lifted into a small smile.

Sora found himself smiling at Roxas's tone despite the dire situation. "Yeah, well, I think you understood what I was trying to say. Anyways, if this Axel's not going to hurt you or kill you or anything than what does he want with you?"

The smile that had begun to form on Roxas's face faded away slightly as he pondered this question. He looked at Axel before answering, "I don't know."

Axel saw the look, and took the phone from Roxas's hand. "Sora? Roxas has to eat now; maybe he'll call you again later."

Sora's anger came rushing back. "Who is this? Are you Axel? Why did you take Roxas? When can he come home?" He was suddenly dangerously close to tears.

"Later," was Axel's reply before he hit the end button on the phone.

Sora stared at the phone that had gone silent on the other end.

"What happened?" Riku asked quietly.

Sora hung up his own phone, before looking at his boyfriend. "Axel hung up on me. Roxas said he wasn't being hurt, but I know he often tries to cover up his pain. I don't know where he is, or if he's coming home."

Riku sighed, and pulled Sora closer. "Sora, we'll find a way to get him home, I promise you."

Sora leaned into Riku, and let his eyes fall shut. "At least he said Roxas was going to eat, that means he's taking care of him in some way."

Riku nodded slowly. "I just can't see why he'd kidnap someone just to take care of them."

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After Axel hung up the phone, he looked back at Roxas. "Eat."

Roxas stared at him for a moment, before crawling over the bed to reach the food on the nightstand. He grabbed a piece of toast and began to nibble at it. "Aren't you going to eat?" he asked, glancing back up at Axel.

Again, looking hesitant, Axel sat down on the bed next Roxas, and grabbed himself a piece of toast, as Roxas smiled in satisfaction. As he finished up eating, he leaned back against the headboard once more. "Axel? Can I ask a question?"

Axel glanced over at his captive, and nodded his head. "What _are_ you going to do with me?"

"I don't know right now." Axel's brows scrunched together as his eyes narrowed in thought. "I find myself not wanting to harm you, but I don't want to let you go, and I don't know why."

Roxas could only stare at Axel's confession. "I find myself not wanting to leave, and I don't know why." He smiled slightly at the look on Axel's face at his own confession. It was one of confusion, surprise, and happiness.

Axel hesitated slightly before speaking again. "That makes me happy."

A small smile grew slowly on Roxas's face. "Me too."

And that was enough for both of them, for now.

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**(1)**_ The flipping of the coin is directly from The Dark Knight. Harvey Dent has a two-headed coin, but one side is blackened from an explosion. He flips the coin to decide if he's going to kill someone; the clean side says the person will live, the black side says they'll die (or in Roxas's case, get beaten)._

_And yes, if anyone was wondering, Axel is supposed to come of as somewhat crazy and childish, as a result of the loss of his boyfriend._

_**A/N** There is a planned part 2, though I don't know how long it'll take me to push out. Reviews in the form of comments and suggestions are always awesome and appreciated! (hint hint)_


	2. AN

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Yup, I'm doing what I hate author's to do, and that's to create an update that's not actually an update. I'm just writing to say that I haven't abandoned my stories, and that I'll most likely be able to update once the fall semester ends. So if I haven't lost you yet, more updates (for all my stories) can be expected in the next month. Thanks darlings!


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